


The Boxing Glove Emoji and Other Mixed Messages

by kowaiyoukai, siriuslyyellow



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Android Gavin Reed, Android Gore (Detroit: Become Human), Android Hank Anderson, Androids, Anti-Android Language (Detroit: Become Human), Anti-Android Sentiments (Detroit: Become Human), Connor & Upgraded Connor | RK900 are Siblings, Customizable Android Genitalia (Detroit: Become Human), Detectives, Disturbing Themes, Evil CyberLife (Detroit: Become Human), Explicit Language, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Female Gavin Reed, Human Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Human Upgraded Connor | RK900, Inspired by Fanart, Inspired by Luscious Whiteflame's Fanart, Inspired by Roleplay/Roleplay Adaptation, Ken Doll Android Anatomy | Androids Have No Genitalia (Detroit: Become Human), M/M, Police Procedural, Post-Android Revolution (Detroit: Become Human), Rough Sex, Size Difference, Trauma, Wire Play, Work In Progress, hankcon - Freeform, reed900
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-28
Updated: 2019-11-28
Packaged: 2021-02-25 20:34:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,790
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21601546
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kowaiyoukai/pseuds/kowaiyoukai, https://archiveofourown.org/users/siriuslyyellow/pseuds/siriuslyyellow
Summary: Activated after the revolution, Gwen is ready to find her way in the world. Armed with the most advanced programming Cyberlife could create, a fuck you attitude, and eight days of experience, there's no case she can't crack.... Except for why Hank won't accept Connor's advances, what's wrong with these anti-android racists, when will Android Crimes get more funding, and why can't she keep her groin plate closed around Nines, anyway?
Relationships: Hank Anderson/Connor, Upgraded Connor | RK900/Gavin Reed
Kudos: 12





	The Boxing Glove Emoji and Other Mixed Messages

**Author's Note:**

> Authors' Notes:
> 
> This fanfiction is actually an ongoing roleplay. Here's what you need to know about it:
> 
> \- siriuslyyellow mostly just controls Gwen. You can find her on Twitter at @siriuslyyellow.
> 
> \- kowaiyoukai mostly controls Nines, as well as most of the other characters most of the time. You can find her on Twitter at @kowaiyoukai.
> 
> \- siriuslyyellow was inspired to start this RP from Luscious Whiteflame's fem!Gavin(Gwen)/Nines Reverse AU fanart, where Nines is a human man and Gavin is an android woman named Gwen. We have taken the amazing concept and run completely wild with it!
> 
> \- We are using "~" to separate our replies. This is so you readers know when the perspectives are changing. Some replies are very short and some are very long. We are totally okay with that, and you should be, too. We are just rolling with whatever we feel is right for the story at the time.
> 
> \- This is an ongoing RP that we are sharing as a fic because we love it and we think others might love it, too. There is no posting schedule, regular chapter length, plan for plot, or end goal. It is ongoing, a WIP, and will likely last a long time.
> 
> \- We are writing this for our own entertainment and enjoyment. No constructive criticism or negative comments are wanted. Feel free to not tell us if you don't like it!
> 
> \- We are trying to keep to the DBH canon and what we think makes sense (while still being fun and dramatic, of course) as much as possible. That being said, if we make mistakes or switch things in the middle of the RP, we're not losing sleep over it and neither should you.
> 
> \- We cannot give a complete tags/warnings list, and we will never be able to. Instead, we will add tags/warnings when they happen.

Gwen backed into the front door of the DPD, pushing it open with her ass as she held a coffee in her right hand, giving the fellow android behind the front desk a faux salute with her left hand as she passed. Walking through to the detectives' desk area, Gwen stopped at Nines' desk. She carelessly plopped the coffee down on top of it, a few drops sloshing over the rim and onto some paperwork.

"Morning, meatsack. I brought the gas you asked for," Gwen greeted her human partner. She sat on the edge of his desk, putting her foot up and resting her forearm on her knee. Cocking her head in curiosity, she asked Nines, "What trouble are we getting into today?"

~

The DPD was always bustling, bursting with activity. Some days were busier than others, but there was usually **something** going on. Today, however, was slow. Not grind your hands into your eyes to stop the pain slow, but nothing special popped out.

Nines didn't bother explaining that to his new android partner. Either she would figure it out for herself or not--it didn't much matter to him either way.

"Paperwork," he stated, calm and collected as usual. He picked up the newly coffee-stained paperwork and let it fall onto the desk across from his, which had been assigned to Gwen when she started at the department--a week ago. "You have to answer the complaint that witness filed about you yesterday."

~

Gwen raised an eyebrow, scoffing. "Complaint? What complaint?" Her LED briefly shone yellow as she reached over to grab the paperwork Nines had put on her desk--turning over to lay on his desk in the process.

~

Nines stifled a sigh. He leaned back in his chair to put some space between them. "What do you mean, what complaint?" Raising an eyebrow, Nines continued, "You called that witness a moron. When he got upset, you asked me if all fleshbags were that whiny."

~

Positive there had to be more involved, Gwen simply blinked, waiting for something that sounded like it could be grounds for a complaint.

~

Nines stared back. "Nothing, huh?" He shook his head slightly. "I guess Cyberlife's best and brightest model still has a few kinks to work out."

~

Gwen scoffed, quickly sitting up. With her inhuman agility, she slid to the edge of Nine's desk and planted her feet on the armrests of his chair. Leaning forward and pointing in his face, she said, "Listen here, that guy was a moron, that's not my fault, I wasn't in charge of his fucking education. And that question was valid as fuck and you never answered it, anyway!" She huffed, narrowing her eyes in annoyance.

~

Nines cooly returned her gaze. "How about, before we go into human social psychology, we start by teaching you the difference between a desk and a chair?" Nines' question wasn't really a question at all--more of a bland statement.

The door to Captain Fowler's office swung open to reveal the DPD Captain in all his over-stressed, under-paid glory.

"Niles! Gwen! Get in here!"

Nines briefly eyed Gwen's feet, bracketing him in from their location on his armrests.

~

Gwen scoffed, shaking her head. "Oh my R-A-Nine, humans need help with everything." She smirked a bit, clearly amusing herself.

Swinging her foot to the side over Nines' head, Gwen swiftly hopped off of his desk. She grabbed the complaint against her, carelessly bunching up the paper in her fist as she headed towards Fowler's office.

~

Nines stood up, smoothing his shirt by running one hand down over the fabric on his chest. He turned on his heel and walked directly to Fowler's office, posture straight and stiff as usual.

Upon walking up the stairs, he heard Gwen already talking. He entered the office and closed the door, internally sighing.

"Yes, Captain?" Nines asked, right to business, ignoring his partner's rant.

~

"-total bullshit," Gwen finished saying, her arm raised to display the paper crumpled in her hand. Then she opened her fingers so the paperwork dropped in a ball on top of Fowler's desk. "It's really not my fault if meatbags have zero personal awareness." Then Gwen rocked back onto her left foot, sticking her hands in her back pockets as she looked expectantly at their boss. "Now that that's settled, you wanted to see us?"

~

Fowler's face got stonier and bleaker as Gwen talked. Nines saw it but decided not to comment since it was really none of his concern.

Until, for some unknown reason, Fowler looked past Gwen towards him and stated in an icy tone, "You need to train your partner better. She's been here a week. She should be learning proper procedure, not how to piss me off in ten seconds flat."

Nines' furrowed his brow. That was fucking bullshit. "Captain, it's not my--"

~

Gwen quickly interrupted, clearly annoyed. "I'm not his fucking pet. He can't train me. I'm my own android. I do what I want. That's literally why I was assigned here, to use my skills how I saw fit." She waved her right hand around in a little circle in the air, as if what she had just said was obvious.

~

Fowler slammed his hands down on his desk, the loud bang startling Nines--though he didn't show it. "You listen here," Fowler said, pointing at Gwen. "Every single officer on my force goes through training. Every officer who's ever been officially assigned to any department goes through training. Maybe you know the job inside and out technically, thanks to your programming. But you clearly aren't ready for any major cases if you think you were assigned here to do whatever you damn well please." Fowler relaxed slightly. "I understand deviancy is difficult. Hank is going through something similar. But I need your skills sharp, and that includes being able to talk to humans compassionately." Fowler held up a hand. "Whatever you're about to say, I don't want to hear it. Dealing with people is the main driving force of this job. Criminals, yeah, but also civilians, informants, witnesses, suspects, officers from neighboring departments, higher-ups. The list goes on." Fowler sighed. "You don't even have to be nice. Niles isn't. You just have to be professional."

Nines waited a moment before asking his question, anticipating that Gwen would most likely want to reply.

~

Gwen opened her mouth, then closed it. She glanced at Nines, then back at Fowler. Her LED flickered yellow for just a moment before turning back to blue. She casually gave Fowler a short two-fingered salute--the pointer and middle fingers on her right hand standing straight up next to her eyes as she briefly moved them towards her boss. "Got it, Cap," Gwen replied, clearly wanting to say more but knowing it was currently for the best if she held her tongue.

~

Wow, Nines thought. That was a surprise. Maybe Gwen wasn't as unteachable as she appeared. At the very least, she clearly wanted to do the job. Otherwise, she wouldn't stick around.

Nines turned to face Fowler fully in time to see his chief look satisfied. "Was there something you wanted to see us about?"

Fowler nodded. "I'm assigning you to the new division. Android Crimes. I'm sure you've heard of it. Your brother's the first officer assigned there."

Nines raised an eyebrow. "I thought you wanted to keep us in different divisions?"

Fowler shrugged. "Orders from on high. You two are the ones with android partners. You get the android cases. Gotta keep policing fair." He looked at Gwen. "You and Hank are getting an extra assignment. We'll discuss that later." He picked up the balled up complaint report and held it out to her. "After you finish filing this."

~

Gwen's face twisted in a displeased smile. She took the paper back with two fingers, as if touching the thing alone was a bother. "Great," she replied, turning on her heel and heading out the door. Once she was just a foot outside, Gwen stopped and popped her head back in the office. "Do we have new desks or what?"

~

"You're moving to the second floor. You'll be in the same room as Hank and Connor," Fowler replied. "Easier to coordinate that way. You'll still report to me." He looked at Nines. "You're dismissed."

"Yes, sir." Nines walked to the door and held it open, waiting for Gwen to remove her head.

~

Gwen tilted her head back, winking at Nines as she looked at him upside-down. "What a gentleman," she cooed to playfully tease him. Then Gwen stood upright, walking towards their old desks as she shoved the report in her front pocket. "You need help moving your stuff, Nines?"

~

Nines walked to his desk before replying, "You'll need all your monstrous robot strength just to lift your ego up this flight of stairs."

~

Gwen snorted, then shrugged. "Alright, suit yourself," she replied as she turned and began heading for their new office.

~

Nines took a few minutes to pack up his belongings, which were admittedly not much. He was still careful, critical, and thorough, though--as he was in all of his endeavors.

In the meantime, it took Gwen no time at all to get up the stairs to the second floor. It was, however, a bit of a search to find the new office. Most of the doors were locked, dusty from misuse, or filing rooms--or all three. After searching down four hallways, Gwen eventually found a door with a piece of paper taped to it that read 'Android Crimes Division'.

~

Gwen snorted, flicking the edge of the paper. "They certainly spared no fucking expense," she muttered to herself as she opened the door. Stepping inside, her eyes narrowed and her LED briefly flashed yellow as she gave their new workspace a quick scan. It was disappointing, to say the least.

~

The room was, bluntly, an eyesore. It was not immediately apparent what its' previous intended purpose was, but it had been quickly cleaned to fit a total of eight desks. Four of them were lined along the far wall, clearly not intended for use. The remaining four were in two sets of two, the longer sides pressed together back-to-back.

There were the typical office supplies on the four desks in the middle of the room--including computers and chairs with wheels. Beyond that, the room was mostly empty with a few scattered piles of leftover junk and boxes of case files. There were four different cork boards with push pins, which was so old-fashioned that it was almost shocking to see.

There were no windows, leaving the only ventilation for humans as a single vent in the ceiling. No coffee machine or snacks were anywhere to be found and Gwen hadn't seen a bathroom on her way--but those were human problems.

Perhaps the most disappointing was that Hank and Connor were already there, having taken first claims over the desks. At the door opening, they both looked up.

Connor smiled at her. "Hi, Gwen! You found it!"

"Hey." Hank looked slightly disgruntled. "I still don't like this chair," he mumbled, rocking back and forth a bit.

~

At first, Gwen sighed. But then she laughed a little, amused, her expression softening as Connor's bright greeting and Hank's complaining pout lightened her mood.

"Hey, guys," she greeted them, walking towards their desks. Gwen reached out a hand to muss up Connor's hair as she tilted her head to look at Hank's chair. "What's wrong with your chair?"

~

Connor leaned back, frowning slightly.

Hank gave an exaggerated sigh. "It's too small. Not that I'm complaining," he complained, "but I don't like the handles pressing into my thighs all the time."

Connor quickly shook his head, brought his hands up to arrange his hair, and shook his head again. A little curl of hair popped back out on his forehead, and Connor settled down, satisfied.

"It doesn't hurt," Hank continued. "It's just constrictive."

~

Gwen smirked at Connor's vanity as she watched him fix his hair out of the corner of her eye. It was pretty adorable and amusing, for a human.

She nodded sympathetically along with Hank. After a quick internet search, she shrugged and said, as if it was an old wise saying instead of just simply an old joke, "Thick thighs save lives."

Then Gwen headed around the desks. Connor had taken the first desk to the left of the door and Hank had taken the desk opposite his partner, which meant there was one seat next to Connor and one seat next to Hank. Gwen didn't know much about Nines' relationship with his twin brother Connor, but she had already figured out that the point of the Android Crimes Division was for androids and humans to work together to solve android-related crimes. So, to Gwen, it made a bit more sense for her to sit next to Connor so it wasn't the humans on one side and the androids on the other. Best to get the intermingling done early.

Gwen hopped up on her chosen desk next to Connor and sat cross-legged on it, facing the door in anticipation of Nines entering soon.

~

Hank looked at Gwen, then down at her desk. Back up at her, and back down again. "If you're not using your chair, can I try it?"

The door opened, revealing Nines carrying a small box under one arm. He walked to the only empty desk and placed his box directly in the middle of it. "Quaint," he stated.

~

Nodding, Gwen waved a careless hand in Hank's general direction. "Sure, go for it, Hank. But leave me yours." Then Gwen smirked at Nines, turning her neck to look at him. "Is it everything you dreamed it would be?"

Nines scanned over the room, emotionless. "Yes," he stated in a slightly depressed tone, continuing to unpack his belongings.

Hank stood up and walked around to Gwen's chair. Right as he sat down to try it out, a loud crack sounded in the room. Hank sat stiffly upright, slowly rose to his feet, and walked back around to his own chair without saying a word.

~

Gwen genuinely laughed at Nines' reaction, now equally amused by the other human in the room.

But just as quickly as she became amused, she became speechless as Hank walked away from her now useless chair. "Hank! Your fat ass broke my chair, man!" She made a motion in the air as if she was hitting him. "I'd smack it if you were closer," Gwen informed her android associate with a hint of fervor.

~

Connor bit his lower lip, torn between amusement and sympathy. "Come on, Gwen, that wasn't his fault. All of this stuff was old and busted before we got here."

Nines raised an eyebrow at his younger brother. "One, yes, it was completely his fault. Two, no comment on smacking Hank's fat ass?"

Hank grumbled before stating loudly, "SO ABOUT THIS CASE WE'VE BEEN ASSIGNED!"

Connor smirked at Nines. "I mean... The woman has taste. What can I say?"

~

Gwen grinned, winking at Connor. "'Atta boy," she said in approval. Then she reached over and took the case file off of Hank's desk. "This is it?" She wiggled the file in the air. "Just one case?"

Sighing, Gwen opened it up and gave it a look.

~

Hank blushed at Connor and Gwen's conversation before loudly clearing his throat. "Yeah, to start. Fowler said we might be kicked more cases if they turn out to be android-related."

Connor shrugged. "Guess we'll have to wait it out for now."

The file was a string of thefts. Ranging from personal homes all the way up to large malls and factories, there were several commonalities that had grouped the cases together. They all had been committed in the past month. They all were of android parts or related paraphernalia. They all had any video footage erased before the crime was reported. The current estimate of stolen items was at $4.3 million dollars, but some officers believed it might be more.

Nines plucked the file out of Gwen's hands. "Sit down," he stated blankly. "In a chair."

~

Gwen glared at Nines. "Hank broke my chair. Blame his fat ass, not me," she scoffed. Still, she hopped off the desk and went to investigate the furniture in the corner, kicking her now useless chair over and away in the process.

The four desks in the corner had five chairs next to them--if they could really even be called chairs. A bar stool, a long bench, a rickety-looking folding chair, an old recliner with huge tears where stuffing was popping out, and a high chair for an infant.

Sighing, Gwen turned around and headed back to her desk. "It's all garbage," she informed the guys. "I'll get our old chairs."

~

Connor nodded at her. "Thanks, Gwen. I'll help." He stood up and winked towards Hank. "I think your ass is quite nice, Hank."

Hank let out a tiny, high-pitched sound, kind of like air slowly rushing out of a balloon. His led spun yellow as Connor left the room.

Nines perused the case file, wanting to be up to speed when this inane chair problem was finally resolved.

~

Gwen laughed as they left their new office space, grinning widely at Connor. After they had walked down the hall a bit, she asked him, "So, you and Hank, huh? Anything going on there?"

"What? No!" Connor's brow furrowed in a way not unlike Nines' did. It was easy to see the resemblance between them. "I mean, it's not that I wouldn't--I mean." He groaned. "Look, Hank became fully deviant a week ago. He's getting used to a life he never thought he'd have." Connor shrugged. "I'm not sure it's a good idea to even ask this early. And that's assuming he's even interested, which. Well. He's not. So." He shrugged again.

~

"Hm." Gwen's LED flicked yellow as she considered this. Shoving her hands in her back pockets, she pivoted on her heel and began walking backwards down the hall so she could look at Connor while she talked to him. "You know we're basically all deviant now, right? They did an update to the basic android software. It spread like a virus, which was the intention." She paused. "Hank was deviant before me, but he was activated well before I was. I basically got turned on and it was like, boom, hello deviancy." Gwen sighed, musing aloud, "I wonder what it would have been like to not be deviant." Her nose scrunched up in disgust. "Probably awful." She spun around to face forward, taking her hands out of her pockets to shrug. "Anyway, my point is, it's impossible for you to know what Hank is thinking if you don't ask the guy. And in my opinion, your flirting is having an effect on him." She grinned wide. "I think he likes it."

~

Connor blushed lightly, waving a hand at Gwen. "Nah, come on. Hank isn't a quiet kind of guy. He says what he means. If he was interested, I think he'd have told me by now." He sighed. "Besides, I do think deviancy is tough on him. He was meant to hunt down deviants. Now he is one. That's a lot to process. He doesn't need more on his plate right now."

~

Gwen clucked her tongue. "I dunno, man. Kinda sounds like you're thinking of yourself more as the problem than as the solution." She began walking down the stairs towards the main area of the precinct. "And taking his choice away isn't cool. If you're interested, of course." She shrugged. "And haven't you only known each other two weeks? I'm just saying, it seems like there's a lot you're not taking into account before tossing the idea out."

~

Connor smiled at Gwen. "I get you. And I'll keep it in mind." His smile tilted a little as he shrugged. "I guess it's a bit different for me. With Hank, I mean." He paused, thinking, before continuing, "There's some people you meet and you just know they're important. Hank's like that. So, you know. I don't want to screw it up." Connor laughed awkwardly. "But that's between you and me, okay?"

~

Gwen held up her right hand in a two-fingered promise. "My lips are sealed, Connor," she replied, giving him a wink. "I might need your help with Nines one of these days, anyway."

They got to the end of the stairs and Gwen headed towards her and Nines' old desks, knowing Connor would follow her.

~

Connor did indeed follow along behind her, sighing heavily. "What did he do now?" His tone was one of a person who had to ask that many times before.

~

Shaking her head, Gwen replied, "Nothing specifically. He's just so..." After trailing off, Gwen wasn't sure how best to describe it. She settled on the only word she could think of. "Nines. You know?"

Gwen walked up to Nines' old desk, grabbed his chair, and began walking around towards her own old chair.

~

Connor grunted. "Yep," he said, popping the p. "I sure do know." He walked to his desk and picked up his chair. It was a little heavy but he managed. Then he walked around to Hank's desk and tried to balance two chairs. Connor couldn't manage, so he put them both down, picked up Hank's, and began walking back upstairs.

~

Gwen grabbed her chair, then went over to get Connor's. With her android strength, carrying three chairs was mostly an easy task--except these things were unweildy and had Gwen rearranging her grip on them four times before they were balanced to her satisfaction.

Following Connor back upstairs, Gwen noticed one officer staring at her as she passed. Raising her eyebrow at him, she casually said, "As you were, officer." The man looked surprised but went back to his work.

Gwen sighed. "Hey, Connor? Do I just give off a 'it's cool to stare at me' vibe to humans?"

~

Connor laughed. "No. Some people aren't totally used to deviancy yet, so when you act human but do something only an android can, they get confused." He hefted the chair again as he continued up the stairs and down the hall. "Try not to get too offended by them. They just need time."

~

Gwen sighed again. "Yeah. You're right, man. It's just gonna take some time." She let out an unimpressed hum sound as she followed Connor back to their new office. "Humans are weird," she added as an observation.

~

Connor snorted. "I mean, after dealing with Nines for a week, I can't fault that conclusion." He continued walking to their office, occasionally readjusting his load.

~

Smirking, Gwen nodded her head in agreement. "He certainly is a handful. And for an attractive-looking meatsack, you'd think he'd be more approachable. But nope." She hummed thoughtfully. "Maybe we just need to go out and have some fun." Her eyes lit up. " **Karaoke**. Yes. That's the solution."

~

Connor's lips pressed together. "Is it though?" They got to the office door, which Connor opened after a few seconds of fumbling. "Great news!" he announced as he walked in. "Gwen thinks I'm hot."

~

Gwen snorted loudly. "That's not what I said." She smirked. "I mean, it's true. But I still didn't say it."

She put down the three chairs she was carrying, all of which were the standard comfortable office chairs on wheels. She slid one over towards Hank. "Here ya go, big booty boy." It rolled to a stop in front of him.

~

Connor held up his head high, clearly pleased. Nines rolled his eyes.

Hank grumbled some more under his breath, still bright blue. Connor pushed over the chair he had carried and said, "This is your old chair, if you'd like it."

Hank smiled a little. "Yeah, Con. Sure. Thanks."

Nines raised an eyebrow. "All the chairs should be the same."

~

Gwen hand-waved Nines' comment away. "They're flirting, Nines, leave them be," she casually explained.

Leaving the chair she rolled over to Hank where it was, Gwen rolled the other two chairs around the desks, dropping hers off on the way to giving Nines his own chair. She gave her partner a thumbs up, then went back to her own chair.

Gwen immediately ignored the thing and hopped back up on top of her desk. "So, what's the plan for the case?"

~

Nines breathed in slowly, contemplating as Connor's face turned beet red and he spluttered in the background. "I think we should focus on finding witnesses," Nines said. "Some of these burglaries were extremely public. There should be a trail."

Hank muttered, "If we revisit the scenes, Gwen and I can check for signs of android involvement."

~

Gwen tilted her head, looking at Hank. "I'm going to check for team combat programs that are compatible for our models. If I find something, I can transfer it over to you. Gimme a sec." Then she became unmoving, her eyes looking far away and her LED turning yellow as she did an online search.

~

Connor reached over and took the file from Nines. "I thought there were a lot of locations for these robberies?"

Nines nodded. "Yes, but we can lower them down."

"But should we?" Connor asked. "It might be best to split up and go through each scene individually."

~

Gwen blinked, her LED going back to blue. She grinned at Hank and held out her hand to him, allowing the fake skin on her fingers to fall away. It revealed her hand's chassis as she looked at Hank expectantly.

~

Hank stood up and walked around the desk. "I'm not climbing over this thing," he muttered. He held out his hand to touch Gwen's, his synthskin falling away as his LED went yellow.

Connor, sitting right next to where Hank was standing, looked incredibly interested in the proceedings. Nines took the opportunity to pluck the file back off of Connor's desk.

~

Gwen transferred the three files she had found on two-person team tactical combat and infiltration for her and Hank's body types, taking extra care not to let Hank see anything she didn't want him to, and making sure to not poke her nose around Hank's files either. After adding in one last irrelevant picture--a receipt for a custom sign Gwen just ordered--and attaching a laughing emoji and a winking emoji to the image before sending it Hank's way, Gwen withdrew her hand. "There, that should do it," she said, smirking.

~

Hank snorted. "What's with that sign?" he asked as his synthskin flowed back over his hand.

Connor reached out and grabbed Hank's fingers, feeling them after the skin had rematerialized. "So your skin comes off when you want it to?" he asked, genuinely curious.

Hank's face turned blue again. "Um, yeah." He shrugged before mumbling, "Fuck, Con, you're so grabby."

~

Gwen gave Hank a wink and a single finger gun motion as her synthskin came back over her hand too. "You'll find out about the sign when it comes in the mail." Then she turned her head to look at Nines. "So are we splitting up these locations between us or what?"

~

Connor smiled sheepishly at Hank. "Sorry, Hank. I should've asked before I touched you. My bad." He let go of Hank's hand with an apologetic smile.

Hank looked to the side. "It's... uh, it's fine." He crossed his arms and walked away, back to his desk.

Ignoring them, Nines looked at Gwen and frowned slightly. "I don't feel comfortable letting you go alone," he stated. Then he flipped a page in the report, reviewing it again.

~

Gwen tilted her head a bit, the corner of her lip lifting up in a small smile. "I meant we can go together, Nines," she clarified, her tone warm. The warmth left her tone as she further explained, "As in, once we know which locations to prioritize, we can take some and Hank and Connor can take the rest."

~

"We should take any that could require a woman," Nines said, matter-of-factly. "Unless there's another way you want to divide them?"

"We should consider location geographically," Hank said. "Checking things out in a smaller space will save everybody time."

~

Gwen nodded. "I was thinking we need a map." She glared at the barren walls. "Or at least a chalkboard or a whiteboard so I could **make** a map." Sighing, Gwen looked at Hank and Connor. "Why don't you two start narrowing down the list while Nines and I go find something we can use for a map of Detroit?"

~

Connor nodded. "We can do that." He pulled the file out of Nines' hands. "Let's try to make a list or something," he said, looking at Hank.

Hank rubbed his chin. "I'm thinking the faster the better for an investigation this size."

Nines stood up and walked to the door. "We should check the main filing room," he said. "There may be maps in there."

~

Gwen looked over her shoulder at their mostly barren office as she followed Nines. Her eyes narrowed, disapprovingly. "I'll grab some office supplies, too. Pens, notebooks, a stapler... They barely give us **anything**." She sighed. "I don't know if the DPD just doesn't care or if they are ridiculously broke, but you can tell they rushed this office."

~

Nines held the door open for Gwen to walk through. "I think Fowler didn't tell us anything about why he created this department," he answered. "It doesn't seem to have the planning and long-term goals the other departments have."

~

Gwen winked at Nines as she passed him. "Such a charmer," she playfully said, smirking. Once she was in the hallway, she shrugged. "Maybe it's just optics. He could be getting pressure from on high to **do something** \--," she used air quotes, "--about androids. A lot of this is new for everyone. Humans just **love** their laws. It's how they cope."

~

Nines raised an eyebrow as they left the office and headed down the hall. "Laws aren't perfect, but they're how we function as a society. Without them, we'd descend into chaos. Anybody could kill anybody with no repercussions." He paused. "And they're why you exist, so maybe be a little more thoughtful about them."

~

Gwen snorted. " **Okay** then, just remind me I barely have any rights, why don't ya?" She clucked her tongue at Nines and gently poked his cheek with her forefinger. "He's lucky he's cute," she muttered to herself.

~

Nines frowned. "I didn't say that. I said you were created as a detective model. The line you and Hank come from was designed to know and enforce our laws. Without the laws, no detective line." He raised one shoulder slightly up. "It is what it is."

~

Gwen hummed thoughtfully. "You really think humans would just go around killing each other without law enforcement? I guess history supports that." She rushed to add, "Don't get me wrong! I love the job. Who wouldn't want a free pass to punch someone in the face, right?" She smirked at Nines, saw he looked unimpressed, then sighed. "I'm joking!"

~

Nines stopped in front of the file room and turned to face Gwen fully. "Humans kill each other **with** law enforcement. Knowing they could go to jail for the rest of their lives, they do it anyway. Just last week, there were riots where people were attacking androids. Burning and hanging them in the streets." Nines cracked his neck, seemingly caught between annoyance and discomfort. "As much as time passes, people always find reasons to hate, attack, and kill. So, no. I don't agree with every law. But I didn't become a detective because I **don't** believe in the system. It's the best we have for protection. For now, at least." He raised an eyebrow. "Maybe you and the other androids can come up with something better."

~

Gwen's brow furrowed as she considered this. After a few moments, she smiled at her partner, giving him a quick pat on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Nines. If we **do** invent a better system, I'll make sure you still have a job." She paused, then added, "If you want it." Smirking, she inclined her head towards the main section of the station. "C'mon, let's go find ourselves a stapler, eh?"

~

Nines jerked his thumb towards the door they were standing in front of. "Did you want to check the filing room for a map first?"

~

Gwen laughed, turning to enter the filing room. "Aaaaand I'm a moron," she joked. Immediately afterwards, she corrected herself, "Who am I kidding? I'm a fucking genius." Gwen held the door open for Nines, giving the room a quick scan. "Looks like any sort of maps are in the back left corner of the room, to our right. There's some haphazardly stacked boxes. Could be what we need underneath the table back there. Seems like it's big old rolled up papers."

~

Nines walked through, heading immediately towards the back left corner. Once he got there, he began sifting through the boxes. "Most of these are unlabelled."

~

Gwen let the door close on it's own, following Nines to the back. She sighed at her partner's observation. "Guess we start looking through them, then." She unrolled one, saw it wasn't what they needed, and put it aside on the table.

~

Nines put his hand on Gwen's arm to stop her. "Can you scan for the largest maps? Or anything new?"

~

Gwen's LED turned yellow and her brow furrowed, her finger tapping her chin as she considered how to complete Nines' request. Then her eyes widened as her LED returned to blue. She briefly gave a scan of the rolls of paper. "Okay, I'm scanning for the latest fingerprint residue." After a moment, Gwen said, "Out of the five biggest rolls and the five that were touched most recently, there's overlap in these three." She pulled them out of the box.

~

Nines released her arm. "Let's take a look," he replied. Quickly unrolling the maps, they discovered that two were plans for new city buildings and infrastructure, but the third was an updated city map. "This seems accurate as of around eight months ago," Nines said. "We could use this if you think it could work."

~

Gwen was already putting the rest of the papers back where they found them. "I think it's good enough," she said, pulling up a current map of Detroit in her mind. "It's mostly right. I can fix it pretty easily with a marker or some pushpins or whatever."

Once the papers were away and Nines had the map in hand, they left the filing room, heading towards the supply closet.


End file.
